Review of ‘Scrivener Essentials’ and ‘The Proposal’. Work and pleasure to keep the balance.

Hi all:

Following on from my short break, where I had a chance to catch up on some reading, I wanted to share some of my most recent reviews. And today I decided on sharing two fairly short books, but completely different.

First, for all the writers who’ve been wondering about Scrivener, or might even have purchased it and wanted a set of easy instructions:

Scrivener Essentials by Karen Prince

SCRIVENER ESSENTIALS: A Quick Start Visual Guide For Windows Users by Karen Prince. Easy visual advice from an expert user.

 After hearing many positive comments about Scrivener from other authors, and taking advantage of an offer, I purchased the programme. I went through the video presentation of the features, and I’ve checked other explanations, but they all seemed very convoluted and difficult to remember at the time of actually getting down to writing. Due to that I’d so far hesitated trying to launch a full-blown project in Scrivener.

Thankfully, this book came to the rescue. It is a step-by-step guide, and best still, visual. That means you can actually open the programme and have the book by your side, allowing you to check as you go along. For me, always looking for that button at the bottom right, under the double line, with a non-descript indicator on it, having an arrow pointing, makes a big difference. Another beauty is that the writer, an author herself, gives us her personal tips, things she has discovered through use, that are invaluable (and will not appear in any of the impersonal, “how-to” guides).

The discovery of this short gem has made me feel more confident in trying and using Scrivener. I recommend it to all writers, who, like me, have been wondering for a while about the programme, but been scared by what appear to be never-ending complex explanations. Thanks Karen Prince!

This is the version for Windows users, although Karen has also published a version for Mac users.

Here is the link if you want to check it out yourselves:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00N6QFCS0/

Ah, and Karen has shared videos and other information in You Tube, so don’t forget to check her out!

And, a short while back I saw this book, The Proposal was free and downloaded it. I needed a light read at the time, and I leave you the review I wrote. When I checked at the moment of preparing this post, it’s still free so, if you fancy it, don’t hesitate!

The Proposal by Lily Zante

The Proposal (A Perfect Match series. Book 1) by Lily Zante. A fun, light read that will keep you turning the pages.

Is a male escort the Perfect Match for a high flying executive creative director of an advertising company? If you read The Proposal you’ll have the answer. Of course, Ethan is much more than just an escort and Nadine isn’t your standard executive either. However, as many tell her through the book; she could end up being one if she doesn’t listen to her heart.

The Proposal reminded me of the movie The Wedding Date that is one of my guilty pleasures. I can’t resist to carry on watching it every time I find it flicking through TV channels. It has a similar plot although in the case of Nadine her difficulties are mostly to do with her professional life. Nadine is a driven woman, focused on her career, who has put her personal life on hold to pursue her goals. She’s pressured by her bitch of a boss, Sandra, and needs to make a good impression during a marketing convention. She needs a boyfriend to share the weekend with her and here is where Ethan, whom she met while he was performing as part of a stripper trio, comes in.

The Proposal is a fun, easy read, with engaging central characters that pull the story together and some fabulous scenes that will make you wish it was a movie.

If you like chic-lit and are looking for a quick and cheerful read you’d be well advised to give it a go. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Here is the link:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ARFOGQ2/

Thanks so much for reading, thanks to the two authors for offering us help and entertainment, and you know what to do, like, share, comment, and CLICK!